A one-year-old boy in India that has been diagnosed with a rare “early puberty” condition has adult-sized genitals, facial hair and even sexual urges.
The boy called Vaibhav, not his real name, was taken to a doctor in India after his family noticed that he was growing faster than other children his age.
At just 18 months old, Vaibhav is 95cm tall — 10-15cm taller than other one-year-olds.
His mum told The Hindustan Times: “We thought maybe he was just a big baby, so we did not take him to the doctor. But by the time he was one, it was apparent there was something wrong.”
The paper reported that the baby was diagnosed with an extremely rare condition known as precocious puberty, and was referred to the Max Super Speciality Hospital in Delhi.
The boy then reportedly begun to grow facial and body hair, a fully developed sexual organ, and his voice had also started to break. Doctors at the hospital are now carrying out specialist treatment for the boy to help relieve his symptoms, which even include sexual urges and potential violence.
The Daily Mail reported that the boy was found to have the testosterone level of a 25-year-old.
Dr Vaishakhi Rustagi, who is treating the boy said that precocious puberty is traumatic for a child of Vaibhav’s age since he can’t express his feelings or understand what is happening to him. Dr Rustagi also explained the danger that Vaibhav could stop growing prematurely if the condition wasn’t treated, leaving him only 3ft or 4ft tall for the rest of his life.
Precocious puberty happens when a child’s body undergoes the changes normally associated with their teenage years at an abnormally early age. This exact age varies with gender, with girls considered to have it if they develop before the age of eight, and boys before nine.
The condition is extremely rare, with Dr Rustagi claiming the odds may be like one in 100,000, and it is more rare in a child as young as Vaibhav.
However, Vaibhav is not alone in having this incredibly rare hormonal condition. In 1939, a five-year-old girl, Lina Medina, gave birth via C-section in Peru, and became the youngest mother ever to be recorded, after being taken to hospital by her family with an abnormal growth in her abdomen.
Lina’s son lived a healthy life but the identity of his dad was never discovered.
Source: Thesun.co.uk and Dailymail.co.uk